This one definitely tastes like fermented grapes.

Feeling slightly fragile after our night out in Stellenbosch, we gingerly headed to the beach in Somerset West late the next morning. It was a beautiful, clear day, and we enjoyed the warm water and massive waves immensely. Feeling revived, we were able to tackle the day’s serious event: WINE TASTING.

The Western Cape is famous for its wines, and it is possible to visit many different vineyards in a day and experience a variety wines through inexpensive tastings. We were touring Stellenbosch wineries and started the afternoon at Dornier, where we tasted five wines and ate an incredible meal. It is days like these that I really appreciate the exchange rate from Canada to South Africa – the same meal and tasting at a restaurant back home would certainly put a dent in a bank account, and yet it cost us less than $5 for the tasting, and under $20 for the meal. DEALS. Plus there was the added bonus of the stunning mountain scenery. No complaints from this happy camper!

Wine smiles at Dornier

The next vineyard on our schedule was Waterford, where we tasted seven different wines, the final three accompanied by fine chocolates to enhance the wines’ flavour. Delicious. Our last stop was Peter Falke, where we tasted six wines … to be honest, I don’t really remember those wines, but what I do remember is lying in the sun on a giant bean bag, watching the moon begin to rise as the mountains turned pink. Bliss.

Mmm... Chocolate and wine, delicious!

Peter Falke ... I wanted to stay on those bean bags forever!

That evening we were treated to a traditional South African meal – Ox Tail – cooked by Christi’s mum. It was delicious!